Cedar Mill, OR

Perched in the rolling hills just west of Portland and north of Highway 26, Cedar Mill is one of the region's most appealing suburban communities. Even though addresses here use Portland for their mailing city, the area is actually unincorporated Washington County. That setup gives the neighborhood a quiet, residential feel characterized by leafy cul-de-sacs, mid-century ranch homes, and newer developments set among tall evergreens and meandering creeks. Commercial hubs cluster around crossroads like Cornell and Barnes Roads, keeping grocery runs and local dining convenient without disrupting the calm of surrounding streets.

ATTRM.O. Stevens / CC BY 3.0

Long before modern subdivisions covered the hills, the land was home to the Atfalati band of the Kalapuyan people, who hunted and gathered across the Tualatin Valley for generations. European settlers arrived in the 1840s, and by the mid-1850s, the Jones family built a water-powered sawmill next to a small waterfall on Cedar Mill Creek. While the mill eventually shut down, the name became official when a local post office opened in 1874. Over the decades that followed, family farms, orchards, and timber plots gradually made way for the residential neighborhoods found here today.

ATTRSteve Morgan / CC BY-SA 3.0

Neighborhood life connects easily with the outdoors thanks to a network of local trails and green spaces. The paved Cedar Mill Creek Greenway winds for over a mile past wooded wetlands and the historic mill site, while spots like Roger Tilbury Memorial Park offer shaded paths and natural play areas. Residents also take great pride in local community spots like the Cedar Mill Community Library, which started through grassroots neighborhood efforts in the 1970s and still thrives with strong volunteer support. For commuters, Highway 26 and the Sunset Transit Center provide quick connections to downtown Portland, Beaverton, and the tech campuses in Hillsboro.

ATTRM.O. Stevens / CC BY 3.0

For prospective homebuyers, moving to Cedar Mill comes with a few helpful logistical details. Because the community is unincorporated, services are provided by regional districts, with Washington County overseeing land use and the Beaverton School District serving local students. Property taxes are often a selling point compared to neighboring Multnomah County. If you plan on remodeling or expanding a home, check with county planning first, as mature tree canopies, hillside slopes, and protected creek corridors can influence where and how you build.